New Mexico Interlock Program The Most Effective So Far

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New Mexico Interlock ProgramThe Most Effective
So Far

• Richard Roth, PhD.
• Executive Director, Impact DWI
• Research Supported By
• NM TSB, PIRE, NHTSA, and RWJ

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Measures of Program Effectiveness

• 32 of all persons arrested for DWI are
  installing interlocks.
• More currently-installed interlocks per capita
  than any other state or nation.
• Recidivism of interlocked offenders is reduced by
  65.
• Overall statewide recidivism is 30 lower since
  2002.
• Alcohol Involved Crashes are down 30 in 4 years
• Alcohol Involved Injuries are down 32 in 4
  years.
• Alcohol Involved Fatalities are down 22 in 5
  years.

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The New Mexico Laws

• 1999 Optional Judicial Mandate for 2nd and 3rd
  DWI
• 2002 Mandatory Sentence for 1st Aggravated and
  All Subsequent Offenders.
• 2002 Indigent Fund
• 2003 Ignition Interlock License available for all
  revoked offenders with no waiting period.
• 2005 Mandatory Sentence 1 yr for 1st 2 yrs for
  2nd 3 yrs for 3rd and lifetime with 5 yr review
  for 4 or more.
• 2005 ALR and JLR periods increased

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1999-2002 Optional Judicial Sanction For 2nd and
3rd DWI Offenders
Roth, R., Voas, R., Marques, P. Mandating
Interlocks for Fully Suspended Offenders The New
Mexico Experience. Traffic Injury Prevention, 8,
20-25.

• Only 150 interlocks installed per year. (4000
  2nd or 3rd convictions per year)
• Judges were reluctant to mandate interlocks for
  offenders who could not get a license to drive
  the interlocked vehicle.
• Interlocked offenders did have a 65 lower
  re-arrest rate while interlocks were installed.

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2003-5 Mandatory Judicial Sanctionfor 1st
Aggravated and above,

• Installation rate jumped from 150/yr to 1000 per
  year.
• Judges were still reluctant to mandate interlocks
  for offenders who could not drive legally at all.
• Many judges felt that they had to apply an
  additional sanction when interlocked offenders
  were prevented from driving because of a BAC gt
  0.025.
• Non-interlocked offenders continued to have 3
  times the DWI re-arrest rate of interlocked
  offenders.

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June, 2003 Ignition Interlock License Actfor
Revoked Offenders

• IILA reduced reluctance of judges to mandate
  interlocks.
• Some (10) of those on 10 year revocation for
  having had 3 DWI convictions in 10 years took
  advantage of IILA to drive legally when sober.
• Others installed to drive legally before
  adjudication.
• Installation Rate jumped from 1000/yr to 3000/yr
• Volunteers were a very self-selected group and it
  was no surprise that they had an even lower
  re-arrest rate than mandated offenders.
• One problem was that many 1st Ags were pled down.

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June 17, 2005Mandatory Judicial Sanction1 yr
for 1st, 2yrs for 2nd , 3 yrs for 3rd, lifetime
with 5 yr review for 4th
Richard Roth Robert Voas Paul Marques.
Interlocks for First Offenders Effective?
Traffic Injury Prevention. December 2007. 84,
346-352

• Installation rate rose from 3000 to 6000 per
  year.
• 6000/ 19,000 DWI arrests 32
• 6000/12,000 DWI Convictions 0.50
• Same 65 reductions in re-arrest rate
• Major Remaining Loophole No equivalent sanction
  for those who claim no car, but are 3 times
  more likely to be re-arrested.

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Publicity, Increased Enforcement, and Forfeiture
Ordinances also contributed to the declines in
the the measures of drunk driving.
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What We Have Learned in NM

• Judicial Mandates get more interlocks installed
  than Administrative requirements. 3 to 1 in NM.
• First offenders must be included because they are
  60 to 80 of all DWI offenders, and almost as
  likely to be re-arrested as subsequent offenders.
• There must be an Interlock License available
  ASAP.
• Revoked offenders are 3 times more likely to be
  re-arrested for DWI than interlocked offenders.
• Hard revocation periods just teach offenders that
  they can drive without being arrested.

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Loopholes that Remain in NM

• No Car excuse.
• No interlock between arrest and adjudication
  (Learning, DWI, Absconding)
• Possibility of waiting out revocation period
  without interlock (for no car, not-convicted,
  and absconders)

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NM Loophole Fixes

• For those who claim no car, a fee equal to the
  cost of an interlock for supervised probation of
  the offender or an equally costly daily home BAC
  test.
• Vehicle Immobilization or Interlock between
  arrest and adjudication.
• No full license reinstatement without a mandatory
  interlock period.

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Model Program Recommendation

• Administrative After ALR, No full license
  reinstatement without period of alcohol free
  driving in an interlocked vehicle. (1 yr no
  BACgt0.05 by any driver)
• Judicial Mandatory Interlock for all convicted
  offenders, minimum 1 yr of alcohol free driving.
• Vehicle immobilization or interlock between
  arrest and adjudication.
• An indigent fund with objective standards.
• Vehicle forfeiture for driving a non-interlocked
  vehicle while revoked.